In Your Own Words … Paraphrasing

The Purpose of our lesson is to learn… oHow to put a passage in your own words without changing the meaning oHow to find the main idea of the text in order to paraphrase it

What is Paraphrasing??? oPARAPHRASING IS… oUsed to rewrite the text in your own words oUsed to clarify meaning oUsed to shorten a longer statement but keep the main ideas oUsed to avoid PLAGIARISM.

What is NOT Paraphrasing: ·-Changing a couple of words. ·-Deleting a couple words or phrases. ·-Rearranging the order of the words.

So How Do We Do It? oRead the passage carefully oDecide the main ideas of the passage oIdentify important words or phrases oPut the main points in your own words PARAPHRASE ME!

Example: YES! Paraphrase Theodor Geissel, known by everyone as Dr. Seuss, has been publishing children’s books for over half a century. Because of characters like Horton and Sam I Am, Dr. Seuss is the quintessential author in American children’s literature. ORIGINAL PASSAGE They have become part of our imaginations' landscape: the crusty Grinch who stole Christmas, gentle Horton the elephant, the Cat in the Hat, and the persistent Sam-I-Am with his green eggs and ham. All these and many more are the creations of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known to generations of readers as Dr. Seuss. Since publishing his first children's book over fifty years ago, Geisel became perhaps the most successful writer in the whole field of children's literature.

Example: NO! Plagiarism Original Passage They have become part of our imaginations' landscape: the crusty Grinch who stole Christmas, gentle Horton the elephant, the Cat in the Hat, and the persistent Sam-I-Am with his green eggs and ham. All these and many more are the creations of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known to generations of readers as Dr. Seuss. Since publishing his first children's book over fifty years ago, Geisel became perhaps the most successful writer in the whole field of children's literature. ·They have become part of our imaginations: the crusty Grinch who stole Christmas, gentle Horton the elephant, the Cat in the Hat, and the persistent Sam-I-Am. All these and many more are the creations of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. Since writing his first children's book over fifty years ago, Geisel became perhaps the best writer in the whole field of children's literature.

EXAMPLE written by Ms. Tweit And Then There Were None: Chapter 1 ·Down the steep track into the village a car was coming. A car so fantastically ·powerful, so superlatively beautiful that it had all the nature of an apparition. At ·the wheel sat a young man, his hair blown back by the wind. In the blaze of the ·evening light he looked, not a man, but a young God, a Hero God out of some ·Northern Saga. ·He touched the horn and a great roar of sound echoed from the rocks of the bay. ·It was a fantastic moment. In it, Anthony Marston seemed to be something more ·than mortal. Afterwards, more than one of those present remembered that ·moment. PARAPHRASE: ·Anthony Marston arrived in a sports car befitting his extra- ordinary good looks. His arrival seemed almost superhuman or like a dream. The other guests would not forget the difference between his magnificent arrival and his sudden, tragic departure (death) on the island.

Please check out this page on Purdue Owl if you need advice! · urdue.edu/owl/owlpr int/563/

Your Turn! 1. Read the four examples provided on today’s webpage. 2. Choose only one and write your own paraphrase. 3. Find a partner with the same choice and check each other’s work. 4. Submit to GoogleDocs with both names (and both paraphrases) on your sheet.

Non-Fiction Practice When you have finished the above assignment, please read the article posted under “Small Group”. It is entitled, “Drug Dogs Common Sight at Area Schools”. Find a passage you find interesting. Cut and paste it into a document and practice writing a paraphrase from it. Submit to GoogleDocs under the subject line: Non-Fiction Paraphrase.

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THIS LESSON ON PARAPHRASING. REMEMBER PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT!